An appointment is made in front of room 8 of the Megarama, a few minutes before the screening of “Jours d’été”. After warm salamalecs, we sit down without fuss in the cinema lobby for our interview. The look is sparkling, the smile is frank and the excitement for this new role is palpable. This is because for Nadia it is about portraying the character of a young rebellious bourgeoisie. An unusual role for her. “I was originally supposed to play the housekeeper in the film”the actress explains to us. But she’s “a little fed up” with this kind of character. “I already played Malika in Volubilis. I insisted to Faouzi to have the role of Rita. In the movie, I’m a crazy teenager and I love it!”. Nadia just loves playing. Not just playing anyway. She also likes to sing and dance. “It’s what thrills me the most in life”, she admits to us. In 2008, while she was still in high school, this Casablanca native landed her first role in “temptations”, a short film by Mohcine Nadifi, and later a role in the series “Lfarqa” by Mohamed Nosrat. That’s it, the acting bug is caught. His parents encouraged him to pursue “serious” studies to ensure his safety. With a baccalaureate in hand, she opted for engineering at the Casablanca polytechnic school, without much conviction, while continuing to take castings. She got roles, suffered a few failures, and then, in 2011, came recognition. While she was in 3th year of engineering, she obtained a role in the film “L’Amante du Rif” by Narjiss Nejjar. A dream that has come true for the young woman who has always admired the great filmmaker. The proposals are starting to rain in, Nadia is gaining ground. While others would have continued this good momentum, Nadia surprises. She stops everything. She flew to Montreal and swapped her career in Morocco for film studies. The young woman is full of enthusiasm and thirsty to indulge in cinema. “I was young and I had nothing to lose… And then, I felt that I had to cultivate myself and study the whole theoretical, technical and historical side of cinema. It was important to me”she specifies.
“I’m not afraid of intimacy”
Since 2012, Nadia Kounda has been making successful television series and films with talent. She was selected in several castings, notably “L’Anniversaire” by Latif Lahlou, “Paris à tout prix” by Reem Kherici and “Certifie halal” by Mahmoud Zemmouri. In 2014, she signed with the Medi 1 TV channel to play the character of Shéhérazade in the television series “A Thousand and One Nights” by Anouar Moatassim. Two years later, the actress worked with director Faouzi Bensaïdi for the feature film “Volubilis”. The role “the most striking” of his career. Nadia received the prize for “Best Actress” for her performance and was named “Gold Star” at the El Gouna Film Festival. She then played important roles in “The swimmer” (2017), “Hawa ya hawa” (2017), “My father is not dead” (2018), “A woman in the shadows” 2022, “ A happy couple” (2023), and many short films with young talents… On the personal side, Nadia is the mother of two children. For her, motherhood is an ocean of love. She has “soothed” his anxieties and gave him “incredible strength”. She has never had difficulty reconciling her life as a mother and film sets. “I believe that cinema is one of the professions that offers this flexibility and allows you to experience motherhood without stress” the actress tells us. And then she’s also a bit of a feminist, even if she doesn’t really like that term. She defends the right to abortion, equal pay… Her hair stands on end when we talk about the lives of single mothers, harassment and violence against women. “It has to move!” she takes offense. Besides, she would also like things to change in her professional life. Today, the 34-year-old young woman is looking for gut-wrenching roles. Intimacy does not scare him, provided that the scenario is well written and that it is justified. “I have done a lot of arthouse films, now I would like to release smooth and square roles. I want to play an alcoholic mother, a cabaret dancer. I want trash, explosive!” Narjiss Nejjar said about her that she was one of the freest Moroccan actresses she knew. “I don’t know why she said that. All I know is that I like to push my limits when it comes to seeking truth and beauty.” So run into the dark rooms to see the mise en abyss of this actress who has not said her last word.
